A Dark Corner
by 8cheshirekat
Summary: Draco/OC, Remus/Tonks-implied / "If you could find a moment to go back, would you still love her, Draco?"
1. Chapter 1: Murky Water

(Draco/OC, Remus/Tonks-implied) In the darkest corners of the mind, you'll find a darkness that's nothing good. Two things that have "nothing to do with each other" affect two very different people. She's willing to help. He doesn't want anybody's help. Now, he's going to have to trust her.

* * *

Draco Malfoy, with is dark eyes and blond hair, was having a very bad start to his sixth school year. He had started with a bad conversation with his friends. Now, he was lagging behind everyone and was frustrated with the search of his bags.

After a few minutes of hiking, he found that he wasn't alone. A girl was moseying up to the castle, humming a lullaby to nobody. Following her, just a few feet in the air, was a beautiful barn owl.

Draco just stared after her before he decided to keep company rather than walk it alone, so, he ran up behind her.

"Hey." He reached out and grabbed her shoulder. When she turned around, he was taken aback. "Um, you're a Ravenclaw?"

She just smiled. "Yes, I am. You're a Slytherin." She had dark blue eyes that were almost black and dark brown hair with streaks of white somewhere under all the layers of hair. In her hand was a long, Rowan wood wand. She was certainly a Ravenclaw, with the tie and badge.

Draco forgot he was carrying his robes. "Right." He was still gawking at her. She was an elegant girl, but not quite a young woman. She had the air of someone who was a bit off the edge and had a wild-side. Something wasn't right about her. "Can I walk with you?"

"Certainly. Just be aware of Fredrik."

"Who?"

She pointed up, to the barn owl that was circling higher and higher. "He sometimes lands on my shoulders." She smiled again and continued to the castle. "I hope they have pies for desert. Pies are good."

Draco kept looking at her sideways for long periods when she'd stop humming. After ten minutes of utter silence from her, Draco looked at her.

She was looking at Draco with wonder in her dark eyes. She smiled when he looked at her and she patted his shoulder. Draco felt something metal on her pinkie. Grabbing her wrist, he realized it was a silver Ravenclaw ring.

"What? You don't like contact?" she asked, confused.

"Who are you, exactly?" Draco asked, letting her go and getting ahead.

"My name is Jennifer. What's yours?"

Draco stopped and turned around. "You don't know?"

"No, why? Should I?"

"Do you live under a rock?"

"No." She looked confused as she walked up beside him again.

"My name is Draco Malfoy."

"Ah, nice to meet you, Draco." She held out her hand.

Draco slapped her hand away. "Are you for real? You really are this stupid?"

"No. I'm not stupid." She looked upset. "I just don't socialize much with other students from other houses. It's unusual for me to even talk to others. My, my, my, someone's a bit angry today." She moved away from him, stepping about four feet back. She started walking again. "No wonder nobody's your friend. You don't have a heart for someone who claims he's a Malfoy."

Draco's fury bubbled up, into his throat. "You're a good-for-naught girl, you know that?!"

Jennifer stopped and looked down at him from the steady rise to the entrance. "If I am, what does that mean you are? I'm just a humble girl who likes the rain and lilies. All I wanted to do was make a new friend. What's your excuse for talking to me?"

When Draco was unable to answer, she made a "humph" sound and turned away. She marched up to the castle, stomping and kicking as she went.

Draco groaned. '_Women! I don't understand them._' He saw the moon and wished it was a full moon just so he could see the castle in all it's glory and beauty.


	2. Chapter 2: A Scent

The feast had been so good and Jenny had been quite eager to see the new students. She had sat with a first-year, because Luna wanted to sit with her Gryffindor friends instead of Jenny.

It didn't bother her, not really. But something about the way Luna stayed away made her wonder. Of course, Jenny wanted the morning to come.

Sure as clockwork, she was back in her seat at the Ravenclaw table and waiting for her N.E.W.T. courses.

Jenny wasn't normally really eager to jump for her classes. She had known, all along, that she'd have her O.W.L.s all passed. The question was, what was she going to do now that she'd passed them all. Jenny had agreed with herself to become something better than what her mother was, a house nurse.

Jenny was looking out the large, multi-paned glass when Flitwick rapped her on the shoulder with his wand. She turned around and looked down. She'd grown used to that, looking down. He smiled brightly and she just smiled wearily.

"So, you've passed every class you've ever taken. You got O's on your Transfiguration, Herbology, Astronomy, Arithmancy, History of Magic, Care of Magical Creatures, Ancient Runes, Muggle Studies, Potions, Charms, and Defense Against the Dark Arts. You have quite the knack for picking things up, and quickly!"

Jenny just nodded and waited for her schedule.

"So, do you know what you want to be?"

"Well, what do you suggest, Professor?"

"An Auror. If not that, perhaps a healer of sorts." He smiled brightly. "You can become virtually anything you please, Miss Jenny."

Jenny stared out the window once more and a smile crept across her face. "I think I'd like to be a healer, professor."

"Good, then you will need Charms, Potions, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Ancient Runes, Herbology, and perhaps you should look into furthering your studies in the Healing Ward."

He handed Jenny a slip of paper and she nodded. She had Charms three times a week now and Potions and Herbology five times a week. Her Dark Arts and Ancient Runes were once a week, leaving her with a whole lot of time to study her new-found art.

When Flitwick moved away, Jenny set her schedule down and wished she could do something greater, like be an Auror. But in Jenny's mind, killing wasn't something she dearly adored. As she got up to leave, she noticed Draco scurrying out and thought she could follow him.

She got as far as the front door before she lost him in the scattered trees and grass. It was like he'd vanished. Taking a step outside, someone grabbed her around the neck and pulled her aside, pointing their wand at her throat.

"Give me one good reason I shouldn't blow your throat out."

Draco's hot breath made the hairs on the back of Jenny's neck stand. She reached up and touched his elbow. "M-Malfoy, stop. I just wanted to know wh-what you were doing, that's a-all." She didn't feel his grip loosen, it actually tightened and she started to choke, holding onto his arm. "S-stop! Pl-please!"

"Why are you so curious?!" Draco whispered in an outraged tone.

Jenny couldn't speak. Her airway was clogged by her Adam's Apple. She was struggling harder and harder, but being a woman and in the clutches of a stronger, taller man, she was losing. Suddenly, her blue eyes shifted to red and she stopped struggling.

"I'm curious because you're quite shifty this morning, aren't you?" Jenny grabbed his elbow and, with a slight pinch, pulled his arm away from her neck like it wasn't a big issue. "Look, I was just curious, you can kill me later!" She swallowed a mouthful of air and turned to Draco.

Apparently, her scorching, ruby eyes startled him. "Surprised? Don't be." They started to fade to violet, and then back to their dark blue. "I'm a 'filthy half-breed' from Ravenclaw, Mr. Pure-Blooded-Slytherin." She crossed her arms.

"You were following me because you felt like it?!" Draco demanded.

"Geeze! Sorry! I just thought you'd like some company." She turned to walk away, but Draco wouldn't have it and grabbed her wrist. "Let me go! You know, if you weren't so up-tight and rude, you would be likable." She reached up and her hand slapped Draco's pale cheek.

He stumbled back, flabbergasted by her actions. "You hit me!"

"I'll do it again if you don't let me walk away!" Jenny marched back into the castle and decided she'd go and find Madam Pomfrey.

She might as well get a good head-start on her lessons, now that she was agitated enough to kill someone. Jenny actually found herself in the Hospital Wing before she even figured out what she was doing.

Standing at the entrance, she saw the neatly placed beds, the nicely made pillows and sheets in the cabinet, the labeled jars of ingredients, the stocks of medicines and elixirs for injuries, the beautiful curtains that hung about the windows, and the fresh smell of clean laundry. Inhaling and letting her nostril flare open, Jenny could smell the brewing herbs somewhere behind all the cleanness. The sounds of the laundry being folded came from the table at the end of the line of beds.

When she stepped closer, a hand came out and grabbed her shoulder. It roughly spun her around and she felt quite small under Madam Pomfrey's gaze.

"Where's the injury?"

"Um, I don't have one, ma'am." Jenny wasn't sure weather to scream and run or stay and bear through the storm.

"Then what brings you to the Hospital Wing?"

"Um." Jenny gave a faint smile. "About that." She reached into her bag and took out the small paper of her schedule. "I'm training to become a healer and Flitwick suggested that I come to you during my spare time."

"Ah, so, you're not going to be some no-non-sense person. Good. At least here, you can witness your work being done. Fist of all, I'll get you some books to study. Once you've got them memorized, we can start some real apprenticeship."

Jenny smiled brightly. "Works for me."

Madam Pomfrey led her to a back room. The room was a bit musty and looked kind of old and dingy, but the warm fire blazing in the small fireplace made it welcoming, like a grandfather's home. There was a large, red, squishy armchair near the fire and a beautiful mahogany desk with an oil lamp, not lit, perched near the edge. Along one wall was a whole lot of books.

Madam Pomfrey began pulling books and books and books. Most were a bit old, but a few were brand new as well as super old. After about the seventh book or so, she pulled out a very old, very broken, very patched-up book. Setting it on top, she handed it over to Jenny.

"Now, you'll read that material. It's the most basic and the most essential stuff you'll need for the healing process. Now, off with you. I must prepare for bad injuries from the flying lessons in a few hours." She shooed Jenny out and continued stocking her shelves with medication, bandages, and slings.

Jenny smiled as she walked. When she reached the entrance to the Tower, she looked around and determined the coast was clear. She raised a free hand and knocked once and waited. The cannon blast came and then the beak.

"What makes the heart tick?"

"There's nothing but the rhythm of life to keep the heart ticking."

"Excellent choice of words."

The door swung open and Jenny plopped herself down. She had Potions in an hour and she was going to have to study up some on her new profession. She looked at the old and tattered book.

"Life and Death, the History of Medicine" was the title and it made Jenny suddenly feel really sick. The words "Death", "History", and "Life" made her feel like she'd picked the worst career ever. All the same, she flipped it open.

After seven pages, she was so engaged in her book that she sort of zombie-walked to Slughorn's classroom. She didn't really pay attention and walked into the room, finding a place to stop. She shut the book quietly and started to prepare for the lesson when she realized that she was facing Draco's table.

She quickly looked down. No sense trying to be part of his conversation. She had to focus on her table and her lessons. She spotted Ernie and her jaw clenched tightly upon itself and she looked away, just to see who else was around.

Pansy, no surprise. Jenny's eyes fell on Hermione. She felt small beside the Gryffindor's Prodigal Daughter sitting proud in her seat. Jenny didn't really think it was a good idea to say that she despised Hermione, because she didn't. Jenny was envious of Hermione's natural talent for learning. Jenny had to earn her way up. She looked away again and, this time, she heard Slughorn.

When Slughorn's Amortentia was mentioned, Jenny closed her eyes and took a deep, soothing, almost cleansing breath.

The smells that filled her nose made her hold her breath.

Freshly polished wood, old books, highly polished metals, evergreens, and the faintest hints of something metallic. It wasn't a smell she'd been surprised by, but the moment she thought of the evergreens and polished wood, Draco's face floated into her mind and she shook her head.

'_Yes, the strongest love potion. I agree, professor._' She heard the lesson for today, but she decided she didn't need "Liquid Luck" and just did her best.

She ended up being in the middle of stirring when Slughorn announced the end. Putting her spoon down, Jenny waited for the class to be over. No sense waiting for something that wasn't going good. After all, why would Jenny want to kill someone if she was going to be a healer?

He came to her's and she stood aside. He gave it a little stir and then gave her a faint smile. "You may have won," he said in a sort of muted voice.

Jenny's heart sank. What could she possibly do with the Felix Felicis? She didn't really want any luck.

When Harry got it, Jenny's heart rose back to her chest and she felt better. As the class was walking out, Jenny dropped Madam Pomfrey's book. It landed in Draco's path. She thought he'd step on it and stood there, waiting.

Draco had stopped, letting Pansy's hand tug him slightly. He knelt down and picked it up, dusting off the bits of powdered roots. He looked at it oddly. "Is this even a book?"

Jenny's face turned an ugly shade of puce. "Yes! Give it back."

Draco flipped it open and saw the inside pages. He just shrugged and held it out. "You should probably keep it safe." He raised an eyebrow when she didn't take it.

Instead, Jenny gripped the side of the table. Her heart felt like it had stopped. Was it her imagination? No, the time of the month was….

"Hey, what's your problem?" Pansy asked, grabbing Jenny's elbow.

She grabbed the Slytherin's hand and pulled it off. That momentum made her collapse to the floor. Slughorn was at her side as the world spun and colors blurred together. It was the time of the month she feared.

---

Draco was seated under a tree that stood in the courtyard with Pansy, Crabbe, and Goyle and he kept his head back, on Pansy's knees.

"Draco?"

"What?" He kept his eyes closed. He had a feeling she was going to ask a silly question about Jenny or what had happened after her eyes had changed colors. Draco hadn't really wanted much to do with Jenny after that.

"What did you smell from the Amortentia?" she asked, a bit of eagerness evidently trying to be hidden.

Draco's mind raced back to the Potion's Classroom and he kept his eyes shut. The smell of lilies, rain, baked cookies, and copper filled his nose again. After a second or two, Draco realized he could actually smell them and he opened his eyes.

Jenny was standing over him. She dropped something on his stomach and walked off, not a word escaping her mouth.

Draco sat up and realized it was his ring. He had accidentally let it slip off when he'd helped set her on the Hospital Wing. He had assumed it'd been stuck under her when he'd slid his arm out. "Hey! Wait a second!"

Jenny just kept walking, ignoring him. "Lu!" She waived to Luna, ignoring the fact that Draco was gaining speed. She marched up the stairs with her friend and--

"I said wait!" Draco grabbed her wrist, a bit roughly, and wheeled her around. "Why'd you give this back? I don't want it."

Jenny seemed to stare at Draco like he was a mad-man before she made up her mind. With a bit of poison in her voice she said; "Because I don't touch pureblooded people's objects. I'm a filthy half-breed from the depths of life. I'm sorry I'm not Miss Pansy over there." She turned away, her brown hair flicking back and brushing Draco's chin.

He felt a thrill of goose bumps run up his spine. "You confuse me, Jennifer."

She whipped around, raised a hand and slapped him. "Don't you dare call me Jennifer, Malfoy!" She looked furious with him.

"What did I say?!" He was frustrated now. Jenny was driving him up the wall.

"For starters, I prefer it if you _didn't_ let your girlfriend glare at me. Secondly, you don't ever call me Jennifer unless you have a point to be made. And, to add to that, you are probably _the most unlikable guy_ I could possibly meet. Can you possibly tone down the 'dastardly evil' demeanor for once?!"

"That's no reason to slap me!"

She raised her hand again and Draco thought she was going to hit him, but she tangled her fingers in his hair and pulled his head down so he bowed slightly. "I didn't slap you because I wanted to! You've got a nosey girlfriend who probably thinks she'll have a go at me later!"

Luna giggled. "Ah, the way you think is quite amusing." She touched Jenny's arm. "But don't kill him."

Jenny let go. "Whatever works, I suppose."

"Are all you Ravenclaws this…." Draco couldn't find the word as he straightened his hair, watching the two girls.

"Luna's the normal one." Jenny walked away, that comment hanging in the air.

Luna just shrugged. "Care for some lunch?"

Draco raised an eyebrow. "What's your problem?"

"Nothing." Again, she smiled, but this time, she patted Draco's head. "You're just quite the pleasant gentleman, aren't you? You should try smiling once in a while. maybe you'll get the girl."

"WHAT?!"

"Oh, nothing, just that you like the way Jenny's lilies come off." Luna skipped off, leaving Draco standing on the stairs.

"What is it with the Ravenclaws?"

Roger had just passed by and looked back at Draco.

---

Dinner rolled around and Draco was sitting between Crabbe and Goyle, like always. His mind wasn't on dinner, but on Jenny's absence.

His eyes wandered up and down the Ravenclaw table, but he saw nobody who looked like Jenny. Was she ditching because Draco was "the most unlikable guy" and she didn't want to be in the same room as him?

After a while, Draco left the hall and headed into the Entrance Hall. As he stepped out of the warmth of the Great Hall, he noticed the front door was opened enough for someone to come in or out. Curious, Draco pushed on the door.

It was a bit warm from the afternoon sun. The heavy door made a little squeak before stopping. Draco looked over his shoulder. Nobody seemed to notice it. The hall still buzzed with life.

"Who's there?!" came a harsh rasp of a voice.

Draco jumped a mile and looked at the slightly moonlit, rolling lawns and tried to see who'd spoken. There was nobody in plain sight….

"I'm Draco Malfoy. Who're you?"

This time, Draco heard the voice and depicted it's direction. It was coming from over his head. "I'm a friend."

Jenny was flat to the wall, lying on her belly. Her red eyes glistened through the haze of the night. After a second or two, she threw herself from the top of the door and landed before Draco.

"Do you want something, Malfoy?"

Draco felt a slight twinge at the name. He felt a little unease, hearing her say it like that, so lightly. His silver eyes swept over her as the torch light lit her features.

She looked white, like snow, and her eyes were a dying maroon color. Her lips were a red that put roses to shame. She looked so perfect, so timeless.

"Stare at me anymore and I'll smack you again." She made a fist to prove her point. Her gray and black and blue uniform made her look like a gaunt girl of Hogwarts. Her features suddenly looked sunken and aged. It was like Jenny had never step foot into the sun.

Now that the moon shone bright, her slightly copper-toned skin made a slightly blue glow that showed her hallow cheeks and thin fingers. Her body looked malnourished.

"Why do you look like that?" Draco asked, disgust obvious in his tone.

"I'm not what you think I am." Jenny shrugged. "Besides, it doesn't matter, does it? You don't like me. You've got your girl." She gave that familiar smile. As her lips parted, Jenny's teeth showed.

"Vampire?!"

Jenny's smile broadened. "Something like that. I told you, I'm a 'filthy half-breed', Mr. Malfoy of the pureblooded kind." She stepped into the castle. The moment the moon jumped off her, the copper-tone returned and her eyes became a deep, ocean blue. "I'm not as normal as you."

She dipped a curtsy and Draco gawked at her. "You're a real piece of work! You just think you're so smart, don't you?"

"Do you realize boys are just as confusing?" She shot her hand out and slapped his arm before walking away. "I bid you goodnight." And she was gone, up the stairs and around the corner.

Draco glowered after her. '_I hate women._'


	3. Chapter 3: The Attack

After all that madness they had that night, Draco watched her carefully. She hardly had red eyes, they were always blue.

But something was weird. She missed a few classes and had gotten detention from Slughorn and Snape for a few weekends. But Snape dropped her detention the day before she had to actually do it.

Draco, also not really noticing her, was quite certain she'd persuaded Snape with her witty comments and he'd dropped it. But it was weird. Jenny wasn't out and about like the other students. She didn't go to Hogsmead and she was only at Quidditch practice when it actually counted.

But then, Draco discovered her secret hiding place.

He'd been fixing the Vanishing Cabinet, as promised, when he heard a light snore from somewhere in the room. Draco had nearly jumped to Jupiter at that point. He thought he'd been quite alone.

Swift and quick, he found the source of the noise. It was Jenny, sleeping on a sofa with her mouth open slightly. She'd dropped a book on the floor and had bags under her eyes, like she hardly slept at all.

"Hey!" Draco shoved her off the sofa.

Jenny just lay on the ground, curled up, and slept on. That ticked Draco off quite badly.

He picked up a heavy book and slammed it down beside her. That got the reaction he was looking for and she jumped so high she was on the back of the sofa. She had perfect balance, because she was perched nicely and steadily on the back with tip-toes.

"What do you think you're doing, Malfoy?!"

"Taking back my space!"

"Shut it! It's not like I've never seen you doing stuff before!"

Draco's heart sped up. Did she know?! "What the blazes are you talking about, you half-breed!"

Jenny's face twisted into anger and anguish. "I mean, I've seen you sneaking around like nobody's important." Jenny plopped back down. "What're you doing in here anyways? Why is it 'Malfoy's space'?"

Draco's cheeks turned a very lovely shade of pink. "I'm trying to fix a broken cabinet. Do you really want me to jinx you?"

"Jinx me, hex me, won't make a difference to me…." Jenny picked up her books and looked at Draco. "I always wondered if there were evil people. I don't think there are, I think there's just those that notice and those that ignore." She picked up her bag.

"Can you figure out how to fix the Vanishing Cabinet?" Draco was getting more and more desperate.

"As a matter of fact, I've done it before. Why?"

Draco looked at his shoes. "I might need your help."

"Right. No."

Draco looked up, surprised. "What? Why?!"

"Because, Malfoy." She was heading to the door. "If I wanted to help you, I think you'd have given me a little more time."

Draco felt his eyes burn and he got up. With a flick of his wand and a mutter under his breath, he stopped Jenny solid.

"I demand you help me!"

Jenny's eyes flared with rage and she tried to get out of the Full-Body Bind, with little success. She didn't look at Draco, instead, she closed her eyes and waited.

"You'll help me, and I don't want any fights over that!" He unbound her and she punched his shoulder so hard he took a step back.

"You're such a--!"

Several things happened in a matter of two seconds. Draco raised his hand and brought it down, Jenny bared her fangs, and a loud noise came from outside.

Draco grabbed Jenny's shirtfront. "I told you, now fights!"

Jenny's body was rigid and she looked like she was bracing for another hit. "That was for binding me, stupid." She grabbed his wrist and tore it from her cloths. "Leave me alone, you piece of dirt." She grabbed her bags.

Draco raised his wand again and brought it around and down. That made Jenny collapse and Draco pointed his wand right between her eyes. "_Cruccio!_" he roared at her and his anger filled him to the brim.

But then, he heard her scream and the anger died instantly.

Her shrieks of agony and tormented pain weren't like others. Draco had heard them screaming for mercy at Voldemort's feet. But this scream was more like a release of pent up fear and depression. It was as if she'd been hurt like this before.

Draco pulled back, his heart fluttering with surprise and a bit of anguish. Had he done something like that to her before?

Suddenly, between her sobs in the bleak emptiness of the room, Draco heard fragments of a sentence.

"Sorry…. I won't…. just stop…. no…." Jenny was talking to herself, rocking back and forth where she sat. Her hands gripped her arms tightly as she tried, desperately to get rid of the pain. But it was what she said next that made Draco's heart drop faster than lightning struck. "Don't hurt me. I didn't mean to, father."

Draco dropped to his knees, his wand clattering beside them. He raised his hands, as if to touch her face. But as his hands got closer, his heart pitched down farther. Jenny's arms had been revealed when she'd covered her ears. Bruises marked her arms.

They were bruises like someone had grabbed her and dragged, tortured, or shaken Jenny so hard, not allowing her a chance of escape. Draco touched her collar and pulled it slightly and he looked away. There was another bruise around her neck, like a noose or something similar had strangled her.

"Jenny?" he asked. He heard his voice shake. Fear wasn't going to be squashed this time, and Draco knew that.

She reached out and grabbed Draco's arm. She spoke to him again, but not directly to him, because she said; "I'm sorry, father. I won't do it again. I won't defy you again. I'm sorry."

Draco realized that the Unforgivable Curse was still working. She was still in pain and it wasn't going away. He grabbed her face and made her eyes meet his. "Stop! I'm not going to hurt you! You're already hurt!"

Jenny's eyes snapped shut and she pitched forward, falling into Draco's arms. She was breathing softly and unevenly. Draco shifted the weight and looked at her face and realized she looked utterly tired.

He dragged her out of the way and beside the sofa. Maybe she'd think it was all a dream and not talk to Draco for a while because of the dream.

Draco also decided he wasn't going to come back and fix the Cabinet for a while, not if Jenny knew where the Room of Requirements was.

---

The crispness of winter stung high in the air and Draco was finishing his lines for McGonagall when someone came running down the hall. For a time, Draco ignored those people, but then he realized that the running came and went faster than he breathed. His head turned to the door as McGonagall went to the door.

A whispered sigh and then he heard the thunder of someone running fast and hard, trying to desperately get somewhere.

This time, Draco saw Jenny. She and Madam Pomfrey were running down the halls, both carrying kits meant for immediate attention. Jenny was muttering to Madam Pomfrey about a cursed Gryffindor. Draco's heart dropped. Had he run out of time? Were they going to kill his mother and father for his faults?!

"Malfoy, you're dismissed." McGonagall was obviously distracted by the sight that was coming up the hall now. "Miss Bell!"

Draco saw her struggling and fighting with Hagrid's arms. Madam Pomfrey was at his heels and was demanding different things of Jenny. The poor Ravenclaw girl was trying her best to keep up with the demands.

Draco shot out of his chair and watched them carrying the fitful Katie Bell. About two minutes later, Jenny was hurrying back down the hall by herself. McGonagall was at her heels and Draco was left alone in the classroom.

He looked up at the top of the blackboard and then at the windows. The light streamed in and illuminated the room in orange. Draco's eyes fell on the door and he marched out and decided he was going to finish that cabinet, no matter what it took.

When he reached the hall, something whispered in his ear and he jumped a mile. Looking around, he realized Jenny had appeared at the end of the hall. She turned to look at him and stood there for just a second.

Draco's eyes widened with disbelief.

Jenny blurred and vanished.

Draco pinched his arm and knew he was alive. He looked around him and thought he'd just been too tired to realize what he'd seen. With a quick shake of his head, he headed towards the Room of Requirements. Without a look-out, he'd have to be careful.

But as he turned the corner to get in there, he froze. Jenny was looking at the wall with wide, crimson eyes. Her left hand clutched her wand and she seemed to be fixed upon the wall with intensity.

"Jenny?" Draco's hand made contact on freezing cold skin.

The contact made him jump back, but got a reaction from Jenny. She dropped her wand and raised her hands to Draco. There was a little blood on the right side of her face, not a lot, but enough to state she'd drank blood. Her crimson eyes consumed her black pupils and seemed to spike out, into the whites of her eyes. She was bearing sharp canine fangs.

"H-hey!" Draco stepped back. When he'd raised his hands, he saw her reach out to grab his right, his wand hand. With a turn, he pulled back and she stumbled to the floor, where she hissed at him. "Hey! That's not funny!" He drew his wand and pointed it at her.

He was about to announce a spell when a flash of ultra-violent purple light slammed into Jenny's face. Draco looked up.

Snape was advancing on them, stowing his wand away. He grabbed Jenny's shoulder and propped her against the wall. When Snape put her head back, Jenny's crimson eyes burned into his.

Draco was confused, he didn't know what to do! Fear gripped him and he started to worry that he might not be able to fend off Jenny, should she attack Snape.

"Jennifer Lupin! Get a hold of yourself!"

Draco's heart stammered to a halt. "L-Lupin?!"

Snape ignored Draco's question and batted away Jenny's attempts at grabbing him. "This isn't the place to feed! Who did you feed on?! Jenny, answer me!"

She was finally able to hiss out one, distinct word out of her collection of hisses and rumbling growls. She said "Pansy" before she grabbed the side of Snape's head and threw him aside like he was a rag doll. He collided with a pillar, but was able to stand up. Jenny clenched her jaw and growled at Draco, slowly rising off the floor.

"Jenny!"

"STAY BACK!" she roared at him, a deep rumbling coming from the back of her throat as she spoke. Wings tore through her cloths and blurred her out. She vanished through a rain of broken glass.

Snape ran to the broken window and looked around. After a moment, he wheeled around and looked at Draco sternly. "Don't try to stop her. Once a Vampire's become hungry, it won't stop until it's satisfied. Vampires like Jenny don't feed on a prey until it dies, just until it becomes unconscious." Snape scratched his head and then crossed his arms. "Was she doing anything before she attacked you?"

"Staring at a wall?" Draco gestured to the blank wall and suddenly looked down. Jenny's wand was still on the floor and he was about to pick it up when it levitated over to Snape, who was still looking at Draco. "What?"

"You can't touch her wand. Nobody can."

"How long is that thing?" Draco asked, suddenly aware it was much longer than wands he'd seen before.

Snape just gave his faint smile. "It's a twenty-inch yew wood wand. It has two cores, rather than one, for dual purposes of Jenny's." He walked up to the wall. "Where was she looking?"

Draco gestured to where it was.

Snape's fingers touched the wall and he sighed. "I won't know until she comes back tonight what this was all about." He looked at Draco. "I suggest you return to the common room, Malfoy. It's not safe to be out and about at the moment."

Draco just nodded and headed off to bed.

---

Jenny's hand clawed right through another tree and she roared to the empty air. The rage in her was boiling hotter and hotter. It wasn't her rage, it was Pansy's rage and it was making it impossible for Jenny to find someone else to feed on.

She felt the splinters in her skin and that snapped Pansy's emotions out of her quite quickly. Looking up, Jenny realized it was a cedar tree. That would explain the pain that stopped the anger.

She quickly yanked out as many splinters as she could. The two holes in her uniform were going to have to be explained when she got back. As she had hoped, she'd landed herself in the Forbidden Forest, away from the other kids at Hogwarts.

She was turning to leave, when Jenny heard a familiar hiss and she looked up to see another Vampire.

"You! Sanguini, how did you find me?!"

He bore his teeth, anger flaring in his old, cloudy eyes. "You tread in the forest that I want to hunt in! Get out!" He raised his right hand, his hand made into a claw, ready to kill if she didn't comply.

Jenny took a deep breath and opened her mouth. With all the air she had, she let out a roar that shook the dead leaves from the trees and even shook the ground. It made a few unicorns nearby to scatter. The roar was so loud it echoed off the mountains, but was very muted when it returned.

Sanguini glared at her and hissed again. "Get off my turf!"

Jenny raised her hands, prepared to fight. She didn't have her wand, so, she'd have to rely on her Vampire strength and her Werewolf instincts. They were the two things that kept her going. "Sanguini, I have no intention of fighting you. Stand down, so we won't have a problem."

He let out a higher, ringing screech. Jenny returned the reply with her roar and the two engaged in combat.


End file.
